Despite the fact that my garden is in Hillary‘s backyard, two important months in my life had passed since I last spoke to her. Knowing that her summer plans would make a get together all but impossible, I desperately wanted to catch up. What’s a girl to do?
I pulled out stationery and wrote her a letter – three pages front and back. I hadn’t seen her since I’d accepted the job offer, and she had no clue that that hadn’t worked out, so there was a lot to say.
She called me the day after receiving it. She laughed saying her first instinct actually was to pull out some paper and write me back! She and I definitely share an affinity for many lost arts. She and I wrote each other all the time when I was living in England and even before that. I also used to send letters all the time to my grandmas. Now that they have all passed and Hillary and I only live three miles apart, I really haven’t had much opportunity to practice those skills, and it felt good to give them a go.
It turns out that many old fashioned ways of doing things are coming back into fashion.
A year ago I read a book called One Second After, part of the preparedness genre I enjoy so much.
One sentence in that novel started a whole new love for me. It talked about the usefulness of back issues of Mother Earth News, which covers all sorts of topics on self sufficiency from raising chickens to canning to building a homestead.
I am now a subscriber (and own all the past issues on disk).
Having once worked in publishing, I’ve been watching the decline of print media over the years. I was therefore very pleasantly surprised when the January edition of Mother Earth News announced that their hard copy circulation was now the largest in their history. It is surprising to me that my desire to learn these skills is becoming more and more common. Maybe I’m not such a rebel after all!
It is reassuring to know that there is a community of people out there that also want to keep these skills alive. I know I have had a blast teaching my friends how to make jam … and giving them my creations. I don’t want to be holed up in a bunker somewhere. For me, all of this knowledge is best used when shared.
When was the last time you wrote a letter? or What do you think is causing the resurgence in the lost arts of past generations?
Grown Up, Now What? 
Tammy – if you like Mother Earth News – I think you’d enjoy a FB site I “like.” Have you ever checked out – https://www.facebook.com/homesteading. Homesteading and Survivalism if the link doesn’t work. It’s full of so much of that kind of information.
And as for reveling in lost arts – you are a kindred spirit in this regard. I often think I was born for another time – but then again – like you – there is so much “modern” convenience and ways of communicating that I see advantages in. So I guess there’s richness to be found in both – we just have to find our sweet spot in the balance.
And blogging – well it’s kind of like letter writing. I consider, and have considered you for a long time now – a pen pal of sorts. So glad we “found” each other in the ethernet.
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Thank you so much for that link. I like and “like” it! I now know where my spare time today is going to be spent.
I see what you mean about blogs and letter writing. It definitely is a glimpse inside the writer’s mind. I’ve enjoyed getting to know you through your blog and comments. There is still something to be said about having something handwritten in the mailbox!
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I don’t think I’ve written a letter in five or six years. It’s definitely a lost art. Every year I get thank you letters from my nephews and niece. So it’s still being taught out there, but I do think it’s losing its importance. I guess we have email to thank for that.
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How wonderful that your niece and nephews are being taught to write thank yous. Email definitely has affected letter writing, yet I don’t think it makes it less important. Those that know how to write a good letter, especially a good thank you, stand out from the crowd. I know from working in HR that a hand written thank you can put a candidate ahead of the pack.
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Letter writing is indeed a long lost art and one I try to keep alive for myself as well as teach my daughter. Even something simple as a thank you note can be a short letter. Admittedly, my letters are not always old fashioned pen and paper ones…I have several friends with whom I correspond via e-mail. However. Our e-mails are not daily or short. They tend to be spaced out and as news-filled as any handwritten gem. I do write letters and notes to my husband and daughter – and they to me. It’s a beautiful thing.
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I also have some friend that my “letter” writing is 2-3 news-filled emails a year. There is still the excitement when I see their names appear in my inbox.
I think it is wonderful that you write notes to your husband and daughter – and that they write you. What a wonderful way to show your girl what a difference a note can make. I was an avid penpaler when I was young. I loved learning about people from around the world. That might be something she would enjoy when a little older. My little sister (who is now 26) has visited many of her penfriends across Europe.
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